Alienware OEM?

Hello all,

New to the forums so forgive my noobishness. I tried using the search function, but found it kind of lacking. I was lurking here a while back while doing some research on buying a new laptop and here is where I learned about brands like Clevo/Sager and how ASUS and MSI are OEMs for bigger companies. I tried to find the answer, but came up with nothing. Who makes Alienware computers? I always thought they were a boutique and not the actual OEM. I know Dell bought them back in '06 or so, and I read that Clevo was actually the OEM for Dell, but is that not the case with Alienware?

Now I know others will have a different opinion (because Alienware fans are like Apple fans) but I've always found them to be WAY overpriced. That's another reason why I was surprised when I read conflicting reports that Alienware makes their own computers and aren't just system builders because generally you don't find that kind of markup with OEMs.

So settle this for me once and for all, please. Is Alienware an OEM or a system builder (or both, even?) I could have sworn they were Clevo boxes under the hood.

 

Edit: See katalin_2003's reply below.

 

Actually some of the older models (pre Dell) were based off Clevo systems. A good example is the M7700 which is based off of the Clevo D900K.

Nowadays, Dell owns the design but they do not manufacture them. Dell Alienware models are manufactured by Flextronics and Compal. Some parts are manufactured by Delta (fans, PSUs etc.).

 

Awesome! Thank you for the reply! I couldn't find that information for the life of me.

So they *were* Clevo. That's probably where I got that from. So can you buy a Flextronics or Compal barebone system or is it like with a lot of other products where it's only available to the system builders like Alienware?

 

You cannot buy a "generic Alienware" from Compal because the design is owned by Dell and all rights reserved. You can buy a generic/white box Compal laptop. I own one (an old HEL80). Many of the older Sager, iBuyPower, Powernotebook and other reseller-branded gaming laptops were made by Compal, and some still are. There are actually not very many laptop manufacturers in the world. Some of the branded resellers don't really want people to know they don't make the computers, and they do not offer up much information about who does. Some resellers don't seem to care, because they are selling their value-added services and products.

And, of course the big boys like Dell, HP, Acer, Toshiba, etc. don't seem to give out any clues on who makes their systems for them. (Can't say that I blame them for wanting to keep that close to the vest... understandable.)

 

No, officially you can't. For the moment, Dell sells only complete systems.

 

Thank you. That's exactly the information I was looking for. I knew there weren't many laptop manufacturers left in the world - it's the same as LCD panel manufacturers. Most is white-label stuff. That's the main reason I posted. I thought it wasn't very likely that Alienware made their own stuff, but possible I guess.

So is Compal or Flextronics currently the OEM for Alienware? Because they don't even offer an 18" laptop. Sager/Clevo has had 17.3" ones for quite some time and I thought they might be the OEM, but it seems that's not the case any longer. You said I can't buy a generic Alienware, but what do you mean? I can't get an M18x in a plain chassis, you mean? The way it *used* to be with laptops like the XPS Gen II, you could get the same exact system in a Clevo, you just didn't get any of the LED lighting or Dell branding. Other than that, it was the same machine.

I can understand the company not wanting to reveal "trade secrets" but as a consumer, I'm for paying significantly less for the equipment and provide my own service as a system builder. I don't need a 5 year warranty from a company to do repairs I can do myself. Parts, yes, but not the system as a whole.